Closure
by Rose Stetson
Summary: What happens when the Ascended beings decide to interfere with Jack's past, and Sam gets caught in the middle of it? Chapter 1 rewritten.
1. Sam or Sara?

**Closure**

Spoilers: "Cold Lazarus" and "Stargate: The Movie"

Sam entered the locker room to find a shirtless Jack sitting on the bench, looking through the old cigar box of memorabilia from his former life. She just stood there watching him and felt an overwhelming sense of déjà-vu: _"Colonel, this becomes the women's locker room in- well, now…"_

"Sorry, Carter." Jack said, hastily closing the box and shoving it into the bottom of the locker. Then, he reached for his black t-shirt and threw it on.

"No problem, sir." She continued, good-naturedly.

He attempted to smile at her on the way out, but he stopped before he completely left the room. He turned toward her. "Carter? You got a sec?"

She shrugged after sensing his inner turmoil. "Sure, I can shower later."

He sat back down on the bench and Sam sat near him. "What do you need?" She asked.

He took a deep breath. "The way I figure it, if I can't talk to you- I mean, SG-1- I can't talk to anyone."

"Sir, I'm right here." She said, instinctively placing one hand on his shoulder, then immediately retracted it, feeling a sense of wrong-doing. "Sorry, sir."

"No, Carter, it's okay. Today is- well, it would have been- Charlie's birthday." He said, quietly.

"His eighteenth," She added, nostalgically.

"Yeah," he whispered. Then, he looked at her, confusion written on his face. "How did you know that?"

She looked confused at him. "I don't know…"

Jack tried not to be unnerved by the occurrence, and continued. "I might have mentioned it…anyway, on his tenth birthday, two weeks before the accident, I…"

"You took him to a Minnesota Twins baseball game." She interrupted, seeming to remember the event fondly. "He loved it."

Jack just stared at her. Then, he stood up and turned to her with his back against the wall. "How the hell did you know that, Carter?"

"Know what, sir?" She asked, as if she had simply spoken to him about one of their missions.

"About me taking Charlie to the game. Did you touch something? Travel in time? Visit some alternate reality after hours?" He shouted, angrily.

"Sir, I don't know what you're talking about." She said as she stood up to leave. "I'm sorry if I've offended you, but you are the one who asked for my help. If you don't need it any longer, sir, maybe I should get going."

Jack grabbed her by the shoulders "Carter, you gotta tell me what's going on. You're acting like…like you know things that only Sara would know. You didn't know Charlie!"

Tears began glistening in her eyes. "Stop saying his name!" She whispered.

His eyebrows knitted together in frustration. "Why? Why should I stop saying Charlie's name around you?"

She pulled away from him, and he could see that she had tears running down her cheeks. "Because every time you say it, I hurt all over again. When Charlie died, it was like someone stabbed me in the heart. I had so much pain that I thought I would die from it all. But now, when someone says his name, it's like someone has taken that dagger that never left my chest and is turning it ever so slightly so that the pain comes back."

She was outwardly sobbing now, and when Jack moved toward her, trying to calm her down, she backed away. "Dammit, Jack! You're not the only one who's hurting! I'm hurting too!"

She fell to her knees and Jack stood three feet away from her, shocked. "How can you hurt, Sam? You didn't even meet him."

"Didn't even meet him?" She asked, looking up from her tears. "How can you say that? I gave birth to him! Of all people, I should be saying that to you…after all, you weren't even there when he was born. You were always on missions when the important stuff happened. Dad's first heart attack…our first anniversary. You weren't even there when Charlie was born!"

"Stop it!" He yelled. "Carter, what the hell do you think you're doing?"

The look of desperation on Sam's face scared Jack. He was afraid that she would do something…anything to end the pain. Just like he had almost done all those years ago. "And then you'd come back and tell me that it was classified when you had the nightmares. I couldn't even reach you then. How the hell was I supposed to reach you when Charlie died?"

Just then, a look of terror flooded Sam's features. "I'm so sorry, sir…I don't know what's happening…I swear. If I could stop this I would."

Jack knelt next to her. "Sam, hold on for me…we're going to try to get you to the infirmary."

He placed his arm around her, and unexpectedly she placed her lips on his and tried to deepen thekiss. He pulled away as he had done when she had been affected by the Virus of the Touched. "Uh, Carter?"

She pantomimed reaching for a thin file of papers. "Oh, look what came home from school today."

Jack paled. "No."

"You're probably looking for Charlie. He was running around her someplace." She said, looking around the locker room as if it was a front yard…the O'Neill front yard.

"Oh God, no." He prayed.

Sam jerked in his arms and turned her gaze to what would have been the second story of their house. "Charlie!" She yelled.

He pulled her closer to him and buried his face in her hair. "Sara, I'm so sorry…It was all my fault…all my fault."

"Colonel?"

He took a deep breath and pulled away from his second-in-command. "Yeah, Carter?"

She looked terrified andthat made himfeel even more helpless."Sir, what's happening to me?" She started sobbing. "Sir, I'm so sorry…Jack, I…I can't believe you have to relive this."

He held her closer to him again. "It's okay, Carter. I'm just worried about you…nobody should have to live through that…nobody."

He held her for a little while longer before he parted from her. He brushed some of her hair to the side and then cupped her face in his hands. "Let's go to the infirmary…maybe that'll get us started on getting some answers, okay?"

She nodded, and he helped her get up. They walked silently down the corridor to the elevator and went up a few stories to the infirmary. The elevator doors opened, and Sam walked calmly alongside Jack. Then, when they were about six feet away from the entry to the infirmary, Sam bolted. "Charlie!" She screamed.

He raced toward her and overtook her at the entrance to the infirmary. This was all playing out like it had when Charlie had died. It was just like when they had raced up the stairs into their room and found Charlie lying lifeless on the ground, the gun in his hand.

"Let me through, Jack. I need to see Charlie." She said, combating his grasp on her.

"Sara, you don't want to see it...trust me."

"Dammit, Jack. He's my son."

"What? Sara, he's my son too..." He yelled.

She managed to peek over his shoulder into the infirmary, and the minute she did so, she stopped resisting his strong embrace and collapsed against his chest, her body convulsing with giant sobs. "Oh, Jack...I said I didn't want any guns in the house." She hit his chest repeatedly. "I SAID NO GUNS IN THE HOUSE!" He tried to restrain her, but she was too strong. But then, she fell into his arms sobbing again. "Why?" She asked before she fell, unconscious, into his arms. He held her for a few more minutes, and allowed his fingers to feather through her hair.

"I know, Sara. And now we're all paying for my mistake." He whispered.

* * *

_Well, Rose Stetson is back with a new story, and I think you'll all LOVE it. It'll be kind of angsty, but it'll all go toward my eventual goal of getting Sam and Jack together! Now, this is a test run...yes, I have a lot more of the story ready to go up, but if you don't send some reviews my way, you'll never get to read it...Evil grin ...I've been hanging out with Lee Davies a little too often, if you ask me. Sorry, I have to correct myself...because yes, kids, even I am wrong...I've been around Lee Davies a lot more than just a little too often_.

_Here's to stories written -essentially- at three o' clock in the morning!_

_All right, now, for the shout out. Lee Davies helped me by role-playing what Jack might say...a lot of the work is mine, but some of it came from Lee._

_Again, no reviews...no story! MWAH HA HA HA HA!_


	2. Charlie

**Previously on Stargate: SG-1**

_She managed to peek over his shoulder into the infirmary, and the minute she did so, she stopped resisting his strong embrace and collapsed against his chest, her body convulsing with giant sobs. "Oh, Jack...I said I didn't want any guns in the house." She hit his chest a couple of times. "I SAID NO GUNS IN THE HOUSE!" Then, she fell, unconscious, into his arms. He held her for a few more minutes, and allowed his fingers to feather through her hair._

_"I know, Sara. And now we're all paying for my mistake." He whispered.

* * *

_

A shocked Janet Fraiser watched the whole encounter. She still couldn't believe her eyes or her ears.

"Doc, can I get some help over here? Something's wrong with Carter." Jack said urgently.

She nodded and two airmen helped Jack lift the limp Sam onto a cot. He lingered and watched Janet as she began to examine her. "Colonel, I need to run some tests, but before I do, I have to ask you a few questions. Do you know what caused this?"

He shook his head. "It was just standard recon on Argos…besides, this happened when we were in the locker room."

She shook her head as she felt for Sam's pulse. "It's steady. I want to get some CAT scans and I want to monitor her brain activity."

Janet looked back at Jack. "Colonel, I need you to go and tell General Hammond about this. Can you handle that?"

He nodded, numbly. "I just want to be back when she wakes up."

"Colonel, she's not going to go through this alone, but you don't have to be the one…"

"Yes I do." He interrupted, huskily. "These are my ghosts…she shouldn't have to experience this without me." He closed his eyes. "Not the way Sara did."

* * *

He walked slowly to the General's office and knocked on the door. He received a wave of the hand from the man on the telephone and Jack opened the door.

"I don't care what Maybourne thinks, I believe it would be detrimental to this program if we continue in this direction." There was silence as the General listened and pondered on what the man on the other line was saying. "Thank you, Mr. President. I'm glad that you feel that way. All right, good-bye." He turned his attention to Jack. "What can I do for you, Colonel O'Neill?"

Jack took a deep breath. "Uh, Major Carter is, uh, well…"

"Spit it out, Colonel."

"She's experiencing my ex-wife's emotions and experiences."

The General looked at him. "Your ex-wife's memories are in Major Carter?"

"Yes sir."

"How the hell did that happen, Colonel?"

"I still have no idea." Jack said.

"Well, take her to the infirmary."

"All ready done, sir. Dr. Fraiser just wanted me to let you know about Major Carter's condition."

"Well, consider yourself dismissed unless you need something." The General said.

"Thank you, sir."

* * *

As he walked out of the briefing room, he literally ran into Daniel who had a cup of coffee in one hand and a book in the other. The coffee cup splashed the hot liquid all over Daniel's book and he groaned. "Aw, Jack…don't you ever watch where you're going?"

"Sorry, Danny."

Daniel studied his friend. "Jack, what's going on?"

Jack took a deep breath. "Well, Sam's…Samantha's…Major Carter is being plagued by my Sara's memories."

Daniel knit his eyebrows together with incomprehension. "Sara…Sara…" He muttered, trying to place the name. Then, he looked up. "Whoa, Sara…your ex-wife Sara?"

Jack nodded.

"Okay, and she is being plagued by memories of your ex-wife or plagued by your ex-wife's memories?" Daniel continued trying to clarify.

"She's reliving the past…" Jack said frustrated. "We…we just went through Charlie's death."

Daniel's eyes widened. "Are you going to be okay?"

Jack nodded.

"Is she okay?"

"She's in the infirmary…she passed out, and Doc's taking the time to run some tests to figure out what's going on." Jack's steps quickened as he reached the elevator. "And I'm going up there."

"Mind if I come with?" Daniel asked, hesitantly.

Jack shrugged. "If you want to."

* * *

They arrived at the infirmary and saw Janet. "Colonel, she hasn't awoken yet, but I do have something interesting for you to take a look at."

She led the men to one of the monitors hooked up to Sam. She reached for the printout and handed it to them. "This is a report of her brain activity."

Daniel studied the paper closely. "What does this mean?"

"Her brain is in a heightened state of hypnosis. She really is reliving these events." The doctor said, sympathetically.

"Dad?" A timid and weak voice said. It seemed to be coming from Sam's bed. Dr. Fraiser turned to Jack, who had stiffened at the sound. "There aren't any kids in the infirmary…"

Jack nodded. "That voice just caught me off guard, that's all. It's Charlie's voice."

"Dad?" The voice whispered a little more loudly.

He walked over to Sam's cot. "I'm here, Charlie. How're you feeling, Champ?"

"Not good. Everything hurts."

"I know, kid…I know."

There was a certain amount of regret in Sam's eyes. "I'm sorry Dad…I shouldn't have touched it…I was just looking for my bat…"

"I know, Charlie. You're going to be fine. Remember, you're a champion, and champions always win." Jack said, sitting next the chair and grabbing Sam's hand.

"You told me not to go in your room…I'm sorry, Dad." She started to breathe heavily.

"Charlie, it's okay. I should have gotten your bat for you before I went to work…" He said, clutching Sam's hand desperately trying to hold onto Charlie.

"Ouch, Dad…That hurts."

"Sorry."

Her eyes started closing, and she started to lose consciousness again. "Charlie…Stay with me, bud…tell me the Minnesota Twins' stats…"

"I can't, Dad…I…gotta go…"

An alarm went off and the heart monitor showed that Sam had just flatlined. "Start with 60 joules!" Janet commanded as the crash cart came bounding next to the cot. They prepped the paddles and as they moved to apply them to Sam's lifeless body, the computer detected a heartbeat again.

"Stop!" The confused technicians did as they were told and placed the paddles back onto the crash cart.

Jack was crying now, and the tears didn't stop when Sam awoke seconds later. "I'm sorry, Sir." She said, breathless from her encounter with death.

"No, Carter, I'm sorry."

He sat on the bed and propped her up so that he could get behind her and put his arms around her. Suddenly, he felt her hands clasp his forearms.

"Jack, I missed you." She looked up at him, her eyes misted over with tears.

"I know, Sara." He kissed the top of her head. "I missed you too."

She gave him a wistful smile. "At least we get to celebrate our anniversary together this year."

"Yeah…not like last year."

* * *

_I couldn't wait...so, call me a liar...aw, what the heck...who cares anyway?_

_I still REALLY want those reviews!_


	3. A Little Older, A Little Wiser

_This is early season 9…alternate universe- Jack is still a colonel, Janet didn't die, Maybourne is still the head of Area 51, and it's still been nine years since Jack has seen Sara. Oh, and Joe has watched SG-1 in action, and all that fun stuff…by the way, THERE'S NO VALA!

* * *

_

As Jack and Sam embraced, Janet and Daniel respectfully left the area. They walked into Janet's office and as Janet closed the door, she sighed. "I wish I had even the slightest idea of what is going on here."

Daniel rubbed her shoulders. "It's okay, we'll figure it out."

She smiled. "I could get used to this."

He chuckled. "Yeah, well, I could get used to you getting used to this."

The sound of crying in the background brought Janet back to the problem at hand. "Daniel, can you think of anything that might do this? I mean, any Ancient technology that SG-1 might have brought back that Sam was studying or something?"

He shook his head as he sat down across from her. "Nope."

"Well, I just want to…" She paled. "Wait a minute…do we know if Sara is having similar symptoms?"

Daniel's eyes widened. "That would tell us if it's a device that we're working with…kind of like the stones that Jack and Joe were communicating with…"

Janet raced out of her office toward Sam's bed when she stopped suddenly, unwilling to interrupt the tender moment that Jack was experiencing. However, she noticed that Sam was again in possession of her body, and as Janet approached, she heard their exchange.

"Jack, I'm so tired."

"Shh…it's okay. Just go to sleep. I'll still be here when you wake up."

She nodded, and her eyes closed gently. He allowed his left hand to run through her blond hair as he watched her breathing deepen.

"Uh, Colonel?" Janet whispered.

He looked up and the tender look in his eyes nearly brought tears to Janet's eyes. "Yeah?"

"I would like to send someone to get your ex-wife. I have no idea what is going on, but if she is experiencing these same symptoms, then I could figure out if it's a specific device that Sam was studying…It's a stretch, but…"

He nodded. "I understand. Danny, can you and Teal'c get Sara and bring her back for Doc's tests?"

Daniel nodded. "Sure. I'll get all the info from General Hammond."

"Thanks." Jack said, looking back down at the woman in his arms.

Janet watched Daniel leave, and then turned around to ask Jack another question. She hesitated, and Jack noticed. "Doc?" He prompted.

"Sorry, sir, it's just…I can examine Sara in one of the small examination rooms that we have nearby, if seeing her would be a little too…"

"Uncomfortable?" He asked.

She shrugged. "Like I said, Colonel, if you would like, she doesn't have to see you."

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. "Whatever she thinks is best…"

As Janet left, Sam bolted upright. She was breathing heavily, obviously terrified. "No! Charlie!" She screamed.

"Sam?" Jack asked, trying to pull her out of the distressing ordeal. He tightened his grip on her, and she reciprocated the gesture.

Then, she jerked out of his embrace, and tears ran down her cheeks. "Jack! No, don't! Don't shoot!" She immediately convulsed as though she had just heard a gunshot.

"Sara, snap out of it!"

The tears and shuddering ended abruptly, and Jack studied her carefully, afraid of what would happen. Just then, her eyes grew wide and she studied something a few inches in front of her, and she screamed. Seconds later, she ricocheted into his arms as if she had been hit by something…probably a bullet, given the pattern previously indicated.

"Sara!" He yelled.

She bolted upright in her bed. She started sobbing, and she looked at him. "Jack, I just had the worst nightmare. I saw Charlie…and then, I saw you shoot yourself, but then, in my dream your ghost shot me."

He held her and rocked her back and forth. "Sara, it was just a nightmare…"

"Is it?" She asked; her icy tone of voice made Jack's blood freeze.

"Of course it is." He said, trying more to assure himself than her.

She looked into his eyes. "Jack, I've watched you. I've seen you in Charlie's room, fingering your gun, and I know that you're thinking about it."

He took a deep breath. "I'm not going to do it, Sara. I couldn't do that to Charlie's memory."

She shuddered. "I'm always afraid of what will happen to me if you do kill yourself. I wouldn't be able to live with myself. And I would probably take your gun and shoot myself too."

Tears instantly sprang to his eyes. "Sara, promise me that whatever happens, you won't do it…it's not worth it."

She leaned into his body. "I won't if you talk to me…if you tell me what's on your mind."

He winced. "Sara, I can't…I just, well, I'm not ready to do that just yet."

She closed her eyes. "Then, I guess I'll keep wondering what will happen if you do kill yourself."

Her eyes fluttered open again, and she looked at Jack's pained expression. "You were going to kill yourself?"

He looked at her, uncomfortable. "I…well, uh…yeah…I was."

She tried to ward off tears, and the strain was seen in her features. "So, that's why you went on the Abydos mission." She stated.

"Carter, I…I couldn't stay there with that memory haunting me. Besides that, I was sure that they wouldn't be able to open the Gate, but with your brilliant work…" He realized that he had begun to blame her for his ill-conceived outlook on his life. "Never mind…listen, the point is that if it hadn't been for Daniel looking me in the eyes and saying that he didn't want to die, and that it was a real shame that I was in such a hurry to, I would have blown up Abydos and myself, and the team would have been here on Earth, somewhat sheltered from the Goa'uld."

She studied his eyes. "You still blame yourself, don't you? You still blame yourself for Apophis's kidnap and murder of the team watching over the Gate, don't you?"

He looked at her, and tried to fake his way out of it. "Of course not, Sam."

"You blame yourself for Sha're and Skaara, don't you?" She continued, her voice escalating.

"All right!" He yelled. "I do! There, you have it. Are you happy now? It's all my fault. If I had obeyed orders, the damn Goa'uld would not have taken Sha're or Skaara because they would be dead. Daniel wouldn't still be mourning his wife because he never would have married her and he would be here on Earth, still safe from the Goa'uld. And…"

He heaved for breath, unaware of the strength of his resent.

"And you wouldn't be having to relive these events," she whispered apologetically.

He looked at her. "Then again, I would never have met you, gotten to know Teal'c, learned how to tune out the technobabble and geektalk…"

She playfully slugged him for that.

"Hey, it's become a very useful skill. But seriously, I wouldn't have learned that there is life beyond grief." He said.

She smiled, and her eyes took on a far-away look. It was different than the times that she switched personalities, and it had Jack intrigued. "Do you think it's worth it? Traveling through the Gate, knowing that every time you walk through that Ring your life is in danger? Knowing that whether it is or not, you've achieved a level of experience and knowledge that other people only dream about?"

He bit his lip in concentration. "You know, I'm not sure."

She nodded. "I know what you mean…Without a family to go home to, a rest and solace every once in a while, this place could get really old…unless you have a deep commitment to your job, not just a commitment to burying your grief."

He shook his head. "How'd you get to be so wise?"

She smiled serenely at him. "I just listen to Charlie."

* * *

_Read and review...I loved the response I got earlier...just want more of it!_


	4. She's Coming

Daniel approached Sara's house with apprehension, and he took a deep breath before he rang the doorbell. "I hope we know what we're doing…" He muttered.

Before Teal'c could answer, Mike (Sara's dad) opened the door. "Hello?"

"Hi," Daniel began. "My name is Daniel Jackson, and I'm here to see Sara O'Neill. It's really important."

Mike nodded, "Come on into the living room. I'll go tell Sara you're here."

After a couple of awkward minutes, Sara came down the stairs and stood in front of the strangers. "Can I help you?"

"Yeah…My name is Daniel Jackson, and this is my colleague, Murray. We met a couple of years ago after a bit of radiation was emitted at the local hospital."

"You're on Jack's team." She said, shocked as she closed her eyes, trying to ward off the reaction that she was experiencing. "How did it happen?"

Daniel's eyebrows knit together, and then they parted in understanding. "Oh, no…he's not dead. We just…we need you to come to the base with us. Something happened, and we want to make sure that you're okay."

She cocked her head in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Daniel thought for another cryptic way to explain this. "You remember the incident, right? Well, the other member of our team, Samantha Carter, is having a similar reaction…we just wanted to make sure that you were all right."

"I'm fine," she insisted. "Just had a little headache, that's all. Nothing unusual."

"Mrs. O'Neill, Major Carter is having flashbacks to the day that Charlie died. Don't you think that's a little unusual?" Daniel shot back, pleadingly. Her face held shock and confusion. "Listen, it won't be anything really inconvenient. Just an hour at the base, an examination, and if you check out, you're back home. Please…"

She sighed. "All right, just let me tell my dad."


	5. Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

Jack just stared at Sam, unsure of what she meant, but suddenly, she fell onto the pillow- dead asleep.

"Carter?" He asked, trying to wake her up.

She wouldn't move, and Jack was about to call Janet when suddenly, he heard her whimper. "Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Daddy?" The cry came again, a little more urgent.

"I'm here, Charlie…" Jack said, putting his arms around Sam in a paternal embrace.

_This is weird…_ crossed his mind, but he was too busy to worry about it.

Her eyes opened abruptly, and she started crying. "Daddy, bad men are coming after me…they're going to hurt me!"

Jack shook his head. "No, Champ, they're not. Remember, Daddy goes and takes care of the bad men."

A sad smile replaced the terror on her face. "That's why you couldn't see my home run, isn't it?"

Jack tried to keep from crying; he still resented the fact that he had been on missions for most of his son's life…

"Yeah, it is. But you know what? Mommy videotaped the game so that I can see it. Should we watch it tomorrow?"

She nodded. "Yeah."

"But you have to go back to sleep so tomorrow will come." Jack reasoned.

She closed her eyes obediently, but they snapped open again. "Daddy, I can still see the bad men!"

Jack thought for a minute. "How about I sing you a song?"

"Twinkle." She said, contentedly.

"Aw, I was going to sing 'Thriller.'" He said, mockingly frustrated.

"I don't like that song, Daddy."

"You are your mother's child, aren't you?" He replied, teasingly.

"Yep."

"Okay…_Twinkle, twinkle, little star…_" He stopped, getting slightly choked up as he sang it.

Sam sat up like an excited little girl, clapping her hands. "More, Daddy! More! Charlie likes it."

Jack looked at her, very confused. "What?"

"Charlie likes it, Daddy!"

Instantly, another entity took over. "Grace! It's not your turn! Go play with Mommy for a little while."

The little girl resurfaced. "But, Charlie! I've already played with Mommy! I want to play with Daddy!" She returned her attention to Jack. "Daddy, do you know how to blow bubbles?"

"Grace," came a warning voice from Charlie.

"Fine," the little girl said before allowing Charlie to surface for a greater amount of time.

"Sorry, Dad. Grace is just a little upset because her mom is trying to teach her how to read, and all Grace wants to do is play with bubbles and sing 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.' But enough about that…let's talk about what's going on."

* * *

_Thanks for all the reviews, but I wouldn't mind getting more...even if you are "spamming the system..."_


	6. Why?

_Okay, a lot of my faithful (and new) reviewers said they were confused…especially about Grace. Okay, if you haven't seen the episode "Grace" you're not alone…I've only seen the last few minutes of it, but my friends have described it a little to me. Apparently, it's a really heavy episode where you're not sure Sam's going to make it or not, but that's off-set by the fact that she's "hallucinating" a little girl named Grace. She sings "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," and plays with bubbles a lot._

_Now, I put her in the story so that she can interact with an ascended Charlie…read on to figure it out. My theory is that the "unborn" beings and the Ascended beings hang out in the same circles, so Charlie is watching over his future half-sister. (I'm a die-hard Sam and Jack shipper…if you didn't know that before, I'm really scared…) I thought it was a cute idea, so just go with me on this…_

_Oh, Sam and Jack aren't dating yet…this is going to shake up their relationship._

_Now, back to the regular programming.

* * *

_

**Previously on Stargate: SG-1:**

"**All Grace wants to do is play with bubbles and sing "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star." But that's enough about that…let's talk about what's going on here."**

**And now, the next chapter:

* * *

**

Jack sat down in the chair next to Sam's bed. "You're a little different than I remember, Charlie."

"I know, Dad, but you should have expected that…it's my eighteenth birthday."

"Hey, I just expected a little more rebellious teenager stage before the whole self-assured adult stage." Jack said, still reeling in shock and awe.

"Oh, you should ask Oma…boy, does she have stories about me…" Charlie said, shaking Sam's head in mock exasperation.

"Oma, huh? Let me guess, this is a rebellious teenager moment…" Jack said as he chuckled.

"You got it, but back to the point. This is really important. I only have a few more minutes before Grace and I have to take Mom's memories and leave."

"Whoa…Mom's memories?" Jack said with one finger outstretched in a 'hold on' gesture.

"I downloaded Mom's memories into Sam…kind of like the whole Ancient head sucker thing that you did a couple of times."

Jack's face showed complete and utter shock. "Excuse me?"

"Mom's fine, Dad…she's just fine, and Sam's going to be fine too. And if you don't mind me saying so, I really like her." Sam's face softened into a grin that looked remarkably like the O'Neill family's grin.

"Who?"

"Samantha…she's awesome, and I really think you guys should both start to admit how much you love each other…" Sam's face tightened into a frown as Charlie continued. "Dad, I don't think you realize how close you got to losing her to Pete. If anyone else comes into the picture and you don't let her know that you want to claim her, you probably won't get a second chance."

"And I thought Cassie was opinionated…" Jack muttered.

"Now, there's a great gal…"Charlie said, wistfully. "If I wasn't ascended, I would probably have taken her to the junior prom."

Jack's brow furrowed. "You know about her junior prom?"

"Well, it was all that you guys talked about for weeks…how her date had seriously thought that he could get past first base with her, and that if you hadn't intimidated him, he probably would have raped her…"

Jack took a deep breath. "Yeah, well that wasn't exactly one of the happiest moments."

"I know. I'm just glad that you got to her in time…I mean, I know Sam was bothering you because she was only twenty minutes late, but if you hadn't gotten there right then…I probably would have had to intervene, and break the guys neck."

Jack's eyes widened. "Do you have a crush on Cassie?"

Sam started blushing. "What? No, I just…nobody should…that's not the point…let's get back to the point. The point is, Samantha is perfect for you, and it's not right for you to let her get away. She loves you just as much as you love her."

"When did you learn all the answers?" Jack asked, quietly.

"When I ascended." He answered seriously. "You know what, Dad?"

Jack looked at Sam, and saw past her exterior into Charlie's soul. It was a very impressive experience. "What, kid?"

Jack could see the sadness on Charlie's face. "You were right when you said that you weren't ready to ascend. In fact, you'll never be ready to ascend if you don't at least try a relationship with Sam. Ascension is kind of about…facing your fears… your greatest fears, and …well, Daniel's greatest fears were about going into battle, but yours…yours are about losing the people that you love. No offense, but…get over it."

"You were in Ba'al's prison?" Jack asked, closing his eyes in despair. Nobody should have to live through that, but more than that, no person should have to watch a loved one go through something like that.

"Yeah…me, Daniel, and Grace. You could say that we became the Three Musketeers. Oma had to keep an eye on the three of us together. Daniel practically became a kid again around Grace."

"Daniel?" Jack asked.

"Uh huh. Grace even started calling him Uncle Daniel…I think the name kind of stuck."

They say in silence for a minute before Jack asked the question that was burning on his mind. "Who is Grace?"

Charlie backpedaled really fast. "Uh, well…you see…she's not exactly…" Charlie couldn't finish the lie. "Uh, mazeltov?"

Jack laughed. "Okay, how many times did you watch _Fiddler on the Roof_?"

"As many times as you did, Dad. I kinda kept coming to pizza-movie night. I loved the look on Teal'c's face the first time he saw 'If I were a Rich Man'."

Jack nodded. "Those were good times." He paused before he asked the real question weighing heavily on his mind. "Why did you do this, Charlie? I mean, how could you do this to Sam? This experience ruined your mother and my marriage, and I nearly committed suicide. How could you subject Sam to this?"

"Because she needed to understand what had happened to you and Mom…" The young man replied, wisely.

"Why?" Jack asked, hotly.

"Because you've started to shut her out too! Because of the stupid regulations, you've shut her out. Well, you know what? It was bad when you did it to Mom, but I can guarantee that it's going to be worse if you do it to Sam." Charlie started yelling.

"How?" Jack whispered.

"That doesn't matter…the point is, I figured this would be the best way to open up the door of communication between you."


	7. ReAscension

Sara and Daniel walked into the room, looking for Janet. 'Charlie' stopped talking, and Jack turned to see his ex-wife staring at Sam. "Is she okay?"

"Hi Mom," Sam said.

She looked at Jack, and then back at Sam. "Hello?"

"It's me, Charlie."

She brought one hand up to her mouth. "No. Jack, I...this wasn't funny when that other guy came through, and it's not funny now." She babbled.

"I know, Sara. I know...believe me, that's what I thought. Look, I think Charlie's trying to communicate to me. I don't think you're going to be affected. At least, that's what Charlie's been trying to tell me." Jack said, getting up and walking toward his ex-wife. She backed away from him and into Daniel. She was so distressed that she couldn't even apologize for stepping on Daniel's foot.

"Mom, I'm okay. You can stop worrying about me." 'Charlie' repeated.

She just stared at him. "But..."

Suddenly, a bright light enveloped the room, and Oma Desala appeared. "Mrs. O'Neill, Colonel, Daniel..." She turned to the bed. "Come, Grace...Come, Charlie. We have to go. The council is about to meet."

Three white spidery energy globes ascended through the ceiling as Charlie's voice lingered. "Bye, Mom. Bye, Dad. I love you."

Sara just looked from the ceiling to Jack and then at the ceiling. "What was that?"

"Charlie." Jack answered simply.


	8. Fishing

Jack breathed a sigh of relief when Daniel left again to take Sara home. He returned his gaze the unconscious Sam. She stirred, and a smile touched his lips. "Colonel?"

He smiled for real this time. "How are you feeling, Major?"

"Just a little tired...and really overwhelmed." She sighed.

"Yeah, well, I don't see why you're complaining," He said, grinning. "You only had three other consciousness competing for control of your body."

She closed her eyes and opened them again a short time later. "It's so nice to have a quiet mind." She whispered.

He laughed. "I'll bet."

"No really...you try having Charlie and Grace in your head..." She couldn't help but laugh. "Grace wanted Charlie to sing, but he refused, so I offered to teach her to read instead. That's kind of hard if there aren't any books around and the only book that your photographic memory has pictures of is on Einstein's Theory of Relativity. Needless to say, she lost interest quickly."

"I missed not being able to listen to your voice and have no idea what you were saying..." He said, dreamily.

"You're worse than Charlie!" She said as she playfully slugged his arm.

"Hey, I've had more time to practice!" Then, he looked more deeply into her eyes. "You know what he said?"

She blushed. "Oh, I think I have a good idea..."

"Well, what do you think?" He asked.

"Of you and me going out sometime? Well, sir...there are the regs..." She skirted around the question, carefully.

"You've been too busy to read your memos, haven't you?" He asked, smiling.

"What?"

"The President suspended fraternization regulations for the SGC...particularly SG teams." He said, grinning.

Her eyes widened. "Why would they do that, sir?"

"Personally, I think it has something to do with a bet," He whispered.

"On what?"

"Not what, but who...and I won't tell you," General Hammond quipped as he entered. "Nice to have you back full-time, Major."

"Thank you sir." She replied.

"Colonel, once Dr. Fraiser clears Major Carter to go home, I want you to make sure she goes there. Major, I don't want to see you anywhere near the lab for at least two weeks...SG-1 is on stand-down."

"What?" Sam asked, disappointed. "But SG-14 just brought back..."

"No buts, Major..." Jack said. "That's an order. Besides, you won't be able to get to the lab."

She just looked at him, not sure of what he meant. "Huh?"

He grinned. "After we eat cake in the commissary to celebrate your recovery, we're going fishing!"


	9. Epilogue

**Epilogue **

_A week later, at the cabin:_

"So, do we call Teal'c and Daniel?" Sam asked, quietly.

Jack shrugged, "While they would probably never forgive us if they weren't there…that's up to you."

"Us." She corrected.

"Right…us." He said, as he leaned over and kissed her.

"Why are we doing this again?" She asked, bewildered.

"Because I love you, and you love me…" He answered.

"I know that…I just meant, why are we eloping…this soon." She clarified.

"Look, if you don't want to, we can wait a year before getting engaged…do the whole engagement thing, big wedding…" He said, returning to a more upright position.

"No, I just…" She took a deep breath. "I just hadn't ever really thought this was possible…now, it's going so fast."

He smiled. "We're not getting any younger…and anything I need to know about you, I've already learned. After all, when we're on missions, we practically live together."

She chuckled. "You have a point there…"

"So, are we calling Daniel and Teal'c?"

"Well, if we call them, we're going to have to call Janet and Cassie." She reminded.

"Of course…" He conceded.

He watched as she got quiet again. "What is it, Sam?"

She looked up at him. "Huh?"

"What's wrong? You're really quiet, and I thought you were excited about this."

"Oh, I am…" She began. "It's just…I wish…I wish my parents were here." She said, silent tears running down her face. "Especially my dad."

Jack wiped the tears from her face. "You know what Jacob said to me before he died?"

She shook her head. "No."

"He said that you loved me, and that if I did anything to hurt you, he would come and make me wish I had never been born…" He said, smiling. "Above all, I think he wanted to make sure I didn't give up on you."

"Yeah, well Charlie wouldn't let you do that either." She said, tenderly.

"Yeah…" He said, looking out the window at the Minnesotan wilderness.

"He's still watching over you." She said.

"Yeah…I just am thinking…both of us have some skeletons in the closet."

"And we're going to support each other through everything." She said, emphatically. "Starting now."

He smiled. "You betcha."

"So, where's the phone? I think we have some announcements to make."


End file.
